INTRODUCTION
Financial Manual
Welcome to Xavier University of Louisiana’s Financial Manual! This manual outlines policies, procedures, resources, and other supplemental information necessary for ensuring financial literacy and organizational cohesiveness. The Student Government Association expects all recognized student organization (RSO) leaders to review and understand the SGA Financial Manual.
Within the Financial Manual you will find details regarding what is necessary to request, acquire, and spend Student Activity Fee funds from the Student Government Association.
NOTE: By using Student Activity Fee (SAF) funds, your class/organization and the officers agree to the guidelines listed in this Financial Manual, any additional SGA policies, and all University policies communicated through the Center for Student Involvement.
X-CONNECT
X-CONNECT (xula.campuslabs.com/engage) is Xavier University of Louisiana’s central place for all RSO resources, including membership lists, event proposals and promotion, financial management resources and tools, document storage, and more. X-CONNECT is also the system where your organization can access SGA funds.
It is important to make sure your X-CONNECT roster is up-to-date and the RSO officers and advisor information is current and correct. Only students listed as officers in XCONNECT have access to your RSO’s on-campus financial information. To be listed as an officer, the RSO president or advisor can add students through the “Roster” tab. If you have any questions about updating your roster or organization, contact information, please email kwarren1@xula.edu.
X-CONNECT’s financial account only reflects the balance of your RSO derived from the Student Activity Fee (SAF) only. X-CONNECT does not reflect the balance of any revenue obtained outside of the Student Activity Fee. Click here to find out how to open an oncampus account.
If your organization receives funds through SGA, you will first enter a budget request to access the funds. After the request is approved, you will then enter purchase requests for each purchase. Note: only pre-approved purchases entered in X-CONNECT will be paid by SGA.
KEY GUIDELINES
Aryan Gleason, SGA Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer 2023-2024 Academic Year
Check Pick-up Days
All checks will be distributed by the Office of Student Affairs (UC 305B) Monday-Friday during normal business hours unless communicated otherwise by the SGA Treasurer.
Only organization presidents, vice presidents, and treasurers are permitted to pick up checks and all checks must be signed for at time of pick-up. An email will be sent alerting the organization when their check is ready.
Attendance at SGA Finance Workshops
It is mandatory that all organization treasurers attend all SGA Finance Workshops/Treasurer Bootcamps. SGA Finance Workshops will be held up to twice a
semester by the SGA Treasurer and Department of Finance. All financial processes specific to the university are explained and reviewed. These sessions are a great opportunity for organization treasurers to become familiar with all financial literacy pertaining to their position to ensure their job is performed correctly and efficiently.
Department of Finance Account Managers
All organizations have an SGA Department of Finance (DOF) Account Manager assigned to them. Account managers serve as a liaison between the SGA Treasurer and RSOs by being the financial record-keepers for their prospective organizations. Account managers are tasked with responsibilities such as sending monthly running balances and semester audit alerts to their organizations; this ensures cohesiveness and accuracy between SGA financial records and organizations' financial records. Account managers are essential for all RSOs and should be the first point of contact when dealing with financial discrepancies. In order to determine who your account manager is, please refer to the breakdown below:
1. Executive Branch: Aryan Gleason (sgatreas@xula.edu)
2. Chief DOF Liaison and XAB: Erin Robinson (erobins9@xula.edu)
3. Class Councils and RSO Account Manager: Aliyah Smothers (asmothe2@xula.edu)
4. Legislative Branch and RSO Account Manager: Nylah Briggs (nbriggs1@xula.edu)
5. Judicial Branch and RSO Account Manager: Taylor Chamberlain (tchambe1@xula.edu)
6. MAX and RSO Account Manager: Rainah Ross (rross6@xula.edu)
THE STUDENT ACTIVITY FEE
Information and Policies Regarding SGA Funds
Every registered student at Xavier University of Louisiana pays a specified activity fee that is voted by the student body and approved by the University Board of Trustees: $125 From these funds, the Student Government Association sponsors social, cultural, and educational events that enhance your student life experience. RSOs may petition SGA for organizational funding and specific funding for events through the Student Senate. SGA allocates those funds to various entities and RSOs, including the three SGA branches and the Pharmacy Student Association, an auxiliary of SGA.
To ensure SAF spending benefits the student body, SGA has policies regarding the spending of student funds. Knowing your responsibilities as a recipient in following all policies are necessary for you to receive SGA funds and for SGA to process your requests in a timely manner.
Acquiring SAF Funds
In order to acquire SAF funds through SGA, your organization must be a recognized organization in the Inter-Organizational Council. The Inter-Organizational Council (IOC) is composed of all RSO presidents/representatives. This council also approves new RSOs, which allows them to petition the Student Senate for funding.
In order to become an RSO, the interested party should reach out to the Center for Student Involvement (CSI) on the third floor of the University Center, or by emailing kwarren1@xula.edu, to receive the pertinent documents to fill out. Once cleared by CSI, the documents are forwarded to the SGA President who then invites the interested party to the next IOC meeting for a presentation on the potential organization and a vote. If the IOC votes in favor, the interested party will then become a university interest group
Interest Group Permissions
● They are restricted to a semester-long probationary period before the students can petition the IOC to become a full RSO.
● They are IOC observers but are not voting members until they are approved to be a full RSO.
● They can hold general body meetings.
● They can partner with other organizations for events.
● They cannot independently hold their own events or fundraisers.
● They can request university space for meetings.
● They cannot use the University’s name or independently request space for events.
● They cannot access SAF funds.
After the probationary period, the interest group may petition the IOC to become an RSO. The interest group leader may do this by emailing the SGA President (sgapres@xula.edu) and expressing intent to petition the IOC to be granted RSO status. If the IOC votes in favor, the interest group is granted full RSO privileges, including independent scheduling and the ability to request SGA funds.
Your SAF Recipient Responsibilities
As an RSO wanting to use SAF funds, you are a steward for all Xavier University of Louisiana students who have paid their fees, SGA, and Xavier University of Louisiana as a whole. Distributed funds are not part of your personal funds, and these policies ensure the ethical use of these funds. Failure to follow the guidelines outlined by SGA will result in SGA not being able to fund your purchases.
Anything purchased using student activity fees must follow these overarching rules:
● The organization must not discriminate in membership or otherwise on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other legally protected group status.
● Budget requests must be entered into X-CONNECT by an RSO leader and approved by SGA prior to spending any funds.
● Purchase requests must be entered into X-CONNECT by an RSO leader after the budget request is approved by SGA and prior to spending any funds.
● Purchase requests must be pre-approved in X-CONNECT by the SGA Treasurer prior to spending any funds.
SAF Spending Rules & Regulations
All RSOs utilizing SGA funds must follow these guidelines:
● Student Gift Cards: for RSOs using SAF funds to purchase gifts for officers and members, they may be purchased from the XULA Bookstore or from Amazon.com. SAF funds cannot be utilized for personal use. Note: If gift cards are purchased, they must be for specific vendors (i.e. Starbucks, Red Lobster, etc.). General VISA gift cards are prohibited.
■ Recipients must sign acknowledgement forms. RSO leaders can pick up these forms from -- and turn them in to -- the Office of Student Affairs.
● Alcohol: purchase of alcoholic beverages is prohibited; the presence of alcohol at SGA-sponsored programming is prohibited.
● In line with student governance and to ensure ethical fiscal oversight, all entities that use SAF funds can be directed by SGA to provide a budget report at any time during the year. The Student Senate also reserves the right to call an entity to present their budget report.
● Failure to comply with SGA guidelines will result in restriction of funds.
Paying with SAF Funds
You will pay for activities, events, and services either by check or by obtaining a University Purchase Order (PO). On rare occasions, a purchase card (p-card) may be used as well.
Checks
For purchase requests under $200, the SGA Treasurer will process the request and a check can be issued to the entity within 5-7 business days of the request submission For requests over $200, the university’s Fiscal Services department will process the request. Once processing is complete, the check will be issued by the Office of Student Affairs in UC 305B unless communicated otherwise by the SGA Treasurer. The proceeding for checks over $200 is longer, so be sure to consider the estimated timeline during your organization’s event planning. View the Purchase Request Process for more detailed information.
Purchase Orders (POs)
On special occasions, vendors will request, or explicitly accept, Purchase Orders. A Purchase Order (PO) is a promise from the university to the company you are purchasing from to pay for the goods or services. Companies get paid within thirty (30) days after processing. POs allow the university to track how funds are being spent and they make sure the university only pays for goods and services it receives. POs are processed by the university’s Fiscal Services department and are mailed directly to the vendor. If a vendor is requesting a PO, please immediately inform the SGA Treasurer so she can obtain it from the SGA Financial Advisor.
Purchase Cards (P-Cards)
Sometimes, vendors only accept cards. A purchase card (p-card) is a university-issued card that can be used for purchases. If your vendor ONLY accepts a p-card, note that on the invoice and on the purchase request in X-CONNECT. SGA Class Councils can use advisor P-Cards upon receiving advisor permission. Non-Class Council organizations must email Ms. Sierra Blanchard (sblanca@xula.edu) for P-Card preapproval.
NOTE: ALL ORGANIZATION FINANCIAL REPRESENTATIVES MUST SUBMIT A PURCHASE REQUEST FOR P-CARD USE AT LEAST 1 WEEK PRIOR TO INTENDED USE. View the Purchase Request Process for more detailed information.
Contracted Performers
Many contracted performers may not want to be paid with a check after services are rendered and may not want to wait for a PO. If the performer would like the check made available by the date of service, it would require more time to process so that contracts are reviewed by the University. It is encouraged that you initiate the purchase request process earlier.
For any questions regarding contracted performers and finance, reach out to the Center for Student Involvement (sblancha@xula.edu).
Important Notes
● Students cannot sign any contracts with vendors on behalf of the university. Only authorized university personnel can.
● Be sure to ask your vendor if they accept POs before going forward with an order.
● You cannot pay for or receive anything (goods or services) from a vendor prior to receiving a check/purchase order from SGA.
● Reimbursements will not be issued to students or advisors.
Prohibited SAF Purchases
Items that cannot be purchased with SGA SAF funds:
● Any purchase not submitted to X-CONNECT prior to payment
● Any purchase not approved by SGA prior to payment
● Any purchases prohibited by SGA policy
● VISA gift cards
● Alcoholic beverages
● Personal use items
● Purchases through a non-university-approved vendor
Note: this list is not exhaustive and is subject to change
MONEY MANAGEMENT GUIDELINES
What Do You Do, and How Do You Do It?
RSOs should maintain records to share with members and their advisors, and advisors should always have access to funds and be listed as the names on the on-campus bank account (if created). In order to maintain good financial control, it is important that one person hold responsibility for financial transactions. The organization president and financial officer bear the main financial responsibility for the organization. Guidelines regarding on-campus bank accounts should be documented in organizational processes, procedures, and constitutions.
Officer Responsibilities
Student leaders’ responsibilities include the following:
● Understand how to access on-campus organizational funds.
● Keep regular and accurate records of all deposits and expenses.
● Share information with members at general meetings.
● Make financial decisions that are central to the organization’s mission, vision, and goals.
● Communicate with your leadership team often.
● Always have a transition plan for the next group of leaders.
● Keep the advisor aware of all financial transactions and the status of the organization.
Advisor Responsibilities
Advisor responsibilities include the following:
● Be knowledgeable of your organization’s finances and procedures, as well as university policies.
● Challenge students to make budget and expenditure decisions that best reflect the central mission and purpose of the organization.
● Hold financial officers accountable for proactive financial management.
● If the organization has an on-campus bank account with the Xavier University Federal Credit Union, review monthly banking statements with the president and financial officer(s) on a regular basis.
Opening an On-Campus Organization Bank Account
The Student Government Association encourages RSOs that would like to utilize additional funds outside of the SAF to open a bank account with the Xavier University Federal Credit Union Please note that Xavier is only able to monitor funds housed on campus and is not responsible for funds accounted for outside of the institution.
Xavier University Federal Credit Union information:
● Location: Xavier South, Room 401
● Phone: (504) 520-7394
Responsible Ways to Collect Funds
Collecting Funds
The only approved method of collecting funds donated to your organization and collected at events is by cash. Digital methods are currently not available. When there is a cash exchange, there should always be 2 people present for accountability.
Exchanging Funds
Recognized Student Organizations:
● If your RSO collects dues or accepts donations, your chief financial officer should have a clear method for how the money is processed. If you receive cash payments, a receipt should be issued to the donator and a copy should be kept for internal records. Complementary receipt books for organization financial representatives are available in the SGA Office; please contact the SGA Treasurer (sgatreas@xula.edu) to request a receipt book. All funds should be accounted for by the advisor and deposited into the organization’s Xavier University Federal Credit Union account within 3-5 days.
SGA Class Councils & Auxiliaries:
● SGA class councils are highly discouraged from collecting funds from the student body unless used as an accountability measure. If class councils need additional funding, they should reach out to the SGA President’s office. If SGA auxiliaries accept fees for specific external events, funds must be turned in to the SGA Treasurer’s office (University Center 210B) for the monies to be processed into their X-CONNECT account.
Fundraising
A fundraising form must be completed and submitted on X-CONNECT before and after the fundraiser. Cash is the only acceptable form of currency for fundraising (no electronic payments). Any money collected by an organization must be accounted for and turned in to the SGA Treasurer. Please refer to the Senate finance allocation bill for more information about fundraising support from SGA. SB 77.6- Finance Allocation Bill.docx.pdf
Reimbursements
There will be absolutely no reimbursements for any purchases that did not go through the purchase request process. In order to ensure that funds are available for your organization, follow the purchase request process as detailed on page 13.